Her hand was raised as high as it could go with just a little wave back and forth. Her excited smile lit up her face and her eyes said “I’ve got this!” And then . . . she proudly read our newest addition to our sight words list with a booming kindergarten voice. . . “A$$!” My eyes widened and my cheeks flushed as I tried desperately not to giggle. “That was so close,” I was able to say in my best teacher voice.
This moment in my room will forever be on my mind whenever I think about teaching sight words. It was too cute for words and left an impact on how I viewed teaching this essential kindergarten concept. Oh and by the way, the word was ‘as’ and she eventually belted it out correctly in her sweet kindergarten voice.
I probably don’t have to tell you that learning to read English is hard. There are rules, rules, and more rules. Then there are exceptions to the rules. Top that off with the fact that our classrooms are filled with diverse and amazing kids. Some who love to sit and listen, while others like to get up and do. We have students who love to talk and sing and students who dread being called on to answer a yes/no question. They all have different interests and learn in very different ways!
So Why Does This Matter When Teaching Sight Words?
Learning is just hard work and teaching a classroom of diverse students is hard work too! Because of this, I’m a firm believer in using multiple approaches to teach sight words. Now before you worry about the possibility of additional work being added to your never-ending task list, let me tell you about how I make this work in my room!
Multi-Sensory Approach to Sight Words
The multi-sensory approach to learning embraces all of these differences and works with them to help students learn. You might have heard that a multi-sensory teaching method is needed for students with special needs or learning disabilities. Well, you would be right. In fact, studies have shown that ALL students learn better when a multi-sensory approach to learning is used.
And it’s not just effective friends, it’s fun too! Students love using a multi-sensory approach in the classroom because it makes their work feel more like play. I don’t know about you, but I am all for any type of learning activities that keep engagement high. This is where multi-sensory learning will be your best friend!
What is Multi-Sensory Learning?
Alright, let’s define what we’re talking about today! Here’s my layman’s explanation. We have multiple highways that lead to our brain. Each highway only allows certain kinds of cars to drive on it. The Visual Highway only allows cars that are covered with pictures and colors. The Auditory Highway only allows cars that make sounds to drive on it. While the Kinesthetic Highway only allows cars that jump, jerk, vibrate, spin, and do the hokey pokey to pass its way. Do you get the picture? Different cars – different highways. All leading to the same destination – our brain.
Our goal in teaching with a multi-sensory approach is to send the same information down as many different highways as possible! This allows for multiple learning opportunities in many different ways. I promise it is not as hard as it sounds. Once you get the hang of how to do this, it’s actually quite effortless to weave it into your routine. And the best benefit if all. . . using a multi-sensory approach to teaching reading is scientifically proven to work!
How I Teach Sight Words with Multi-Sensory Learning
In my classroom, we are working with sight words on a daily basis. Different ways on different days – but working on sight words every day is key for overall success! Here’s a little peek at how we do that:
- Some days we are spelling them and adding body motions as we spell (Auditory, Verbal, and Kinesthetic Learning).
- Some days we are building them out of play dough or word tiles (Visual and Kinesthetic Learning).
- And some days we write them on a partner’s back – with our finger of course – while spelling them in silly voices! (Visual, Textile, and Auditory)
When I plan an activity I try to make sure that at least 2 different learning styles are used to maintain our multi-sensory approach.
A few years ago I set out to create a multi-sensory sight word practice page that my students could do independently in a center. The result was a single page (can you say Yay! for saving copies) that allowed my students to practice reading and writing their sight words in 6 different ways. Not only did my students LOVE them but I saw an almost instant improvement in how quickly they were mastering these words.
Sight Word Practice Pages That Students Love
These aren’t some boring sight word worksheets. No way! These activities are fun for students and actually keep them engaged with 6 different activities on each page. What I love most about this sheet is the many ways it gets my kids working with the word.
- First, they touch the word (textile), say the word, and spell it orally (visual and auditory) Then they trace the word with their finger (visual and textile)
- Second, they trace and write the word with a pencil (visual and textile)
- Next up, the class favorite, Rainbow Writing. There is something about using different colors that really helps those visual learners. (visual and textile)
- Then it’s time for a little word search (visual)
- Finally, they cut out the letter tiles and build the word (kinesthetic, visual, textile)
My kids LOVE working on a single word in so many ways, and each kiddo has their favorite activity. These pages are really great for fostering independence as well. Once students learn how to complete a page, they can work on these all on their own. This makes them a great activity for morning warm-ups, center time, independent learning, and fast finishers! I love the versatility and being able to use them whenever we need to sneak in a little extra sight word practice.
Are you Ready to Save Time and Help Your Students Master Their Sight Words?
These Sight Word Practice Pages have been a total game-changer in my classroom. I’m confident that once you start using them, you’ll be blown away by the results too! To help you get started, I’m sharing a free sample of these pages for you to test out in your classroom. Simply enter your email below and they will be delivered to your inbox!
You can also find full sets of Multi-Sensory Sight Word Practice Pages in the Teaching in Blue Jeans store. At just a few cents a page, you can’t afford to not get your students mastering their sight words today! Give the multi-sensory approach a try in your room and watch engagement soar as your students work toward sight word mastery.
More Engaging Ways to Learn Sight Words
Looking for more ways to have fun with sight words? Check out these posts next!
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You are SO right about needing to teach using a multi-sensory approach. I am just now expanding my thinking about this. I am starting to understand that even though people may excel in one type of learning (be a kinesthetic learner for example) they still NEED to learn about that same concept using other senses as well. The more senses "touched" aids in creating neural columns in the brain.
I think that is so interesting! I used to think that I needed to try to teach using multiple intelligences so that at one point, I would get to everyone's "best" way of learning. Now I am seeing that using ALL those different ways is building connections in EVERY brain. Powerful stuff!
Karen
Teaching Ace Blog
You are SO right about needing to teach using a multi-sensory approach. I am just now expanding my thinking about this. I am starting to understand that even though people may excel in one type of learning (be a kinesthetic learner for example) they still NEED to learn about that same concept using other senses as well. The more senses "touched" aids in creating neural columns in the brain.
I think that is so interesting! I used to think that I needed to try to teach using multiple intelligences so that at one point, I would get to everyone's "best" way of learning. Now I am seeing that using ALL those different ways is building connections in EVERY brain. Powerful stuff!
Karen
Teaching Ace Blog